Tuesday

Jan 1, 2019 at 5:01 AM

"This collaboration is meant to help our students remove some of the mental health challenges in order for optimal learning to occur in the classroom," explains Matthew Robinson, a counselor at Howard Elementary School

A lot can be gleaned from spending 55 minutes with an elementary-age student. Especially if that hourlong session includes creativity, art and play time.

That’s according to Audra Steinberg, a school-based therapist who works for Looking Glass Community Services.

“Kids kind of tell you what’s going on in their lives through drawings, coloring and how they play,” Steinberg said. “Sometimes they draw sad robots, and sometimes they play aggressively, which can indicate various things. Usually I can learn more from what a student tells me through their art or their play, more than with their words.”

Looking Glass is a nonprofit organization that provides a variety of youth and family services, including for runaway and homeless youth. The organization also provides counseling and mental health services to youth across Lane County, as well as programs in behavioral health, alcohol and drug abuse support, basic human services, juvenile justice, education, youth development and workforce readiness.

The nonprofit has embedded therapists in schools for more than 20 years but has in recent years expanded to reach more students, with 16 therapists currently providing services in 30 different Lane County schools.

The expansion is due in part to an increase in disruptive student behaviors and student violence, noted by local and state school officials, as well as by families.

Teachers and other school staff have publicly reported to school board members that students, especially at the elementary level, have thrown large objects, hit, kicked and bitten staff and other students, yelled obscenities and in some cases broken windows, among other things.

Lynn Booth, a mental health therapist and director of Looking Glass’ school-based therapy program, said the influx of clients in the last few years has been due in part to a lack of resources available in schools.

“I think the fact that school counselor positions have been cut and behaviors have become more acute just means that schools are reaching out to us more and want us to be more of a presence,” Booth said. “There’s a huge need for in-school therapists. By providing services in schools, we break down the barriers that keep students and their families from accessing the care they need.”

And school staff agree.

Matthew Robinson, a counselor at Howard Elementary School, said the organization has helped students to focus on learning.

"Looking Glass therapists understand the importance of supporting the whole child and therefore collaborate with their students, families and school staff to provide consistent communication that helps everyone stay on the same page," Robinson said Friday. "This collaboration is meant to help our students remove some of the mental health challenges in order for optimal learning to occur in the classroom."

A day in the life

Steinberg spends most of her working hours — four days a week — at Howard Elementary in the Eugene district, where throughout the week she meets with about 25 students for about an hour each. On Fridays, Steinberg meets with students at Kalapuya High School, an alternative high school in the Bethel district.

“High school kids are way different,” Steinberg said. “There’s a lot more talking.”

Steinberg said in a recent interview that she covers a range of topics with students, depending on their age, family situation, school behavior and more. She said that lot of what she sees stems from anxiety and depression.

The program, according to Booth, aims to “break down barriers” to student success and meet students where they are, in a setting that’s comfortable for them. Therapists also work to collaborate with teachers, school counselors and administrators to provide students with the best help possible.

“Being at the school lets us see the students in their own setting and helps us to understand why they’re struggling with their behavior or what might have upset them,” Steinberg said. “It gives us context."

Traveling to schools to meet with students as well as their families also helps to break down barriers.

Transportation, or a lack thereof, is one of the main reasons that families don’t access counseling, therapy, mental health supports and other services, Booth said.

School-based therapists also work with families as much as possible, whether that’s family counseling or talking with parents to identify how to best help students.

“The most effective help comes from everyone being on the same page," Booth said. "When parents, teachers, administrators and therapists all communicate, that's when we see some of the best, most positive results."

Robinson, the Howard counselor, wholeheartedly agrees.

"Howard Elementary School understands the importance of having strong and positive mental health support," he said. "With a full-time school counselor and Looking Glass therapists working together with their students, staff and families under one roof, it is certainly a step in the right direction in helping our students fulfill their greatest potential."

Officials in the Springfield district, where Looking Glass therapists are working in four elementary schools and two high schools, say the service has given them the ability to address student behaviors and other concerns as they happen as opposed to after they escalate.

"It's a proactive approach instead of an emergency response," said Springfield district Assistant Superintendent David Collins. "In the past we've had to wait for students to reach an extreme situation (before behaviors were addressed) but now we actually have staff on site prior to kids reaching that scenario. It's much more proactive and responsive prior to a big escalation."

Collins said the district uses a combination of federal and local grant funds, as well as individual insurance plans to ensure that all students receive the care they need.

"We no longer have to wait until their insurance kicks in to start helping students," Collins said.

How it works

So how does the school-based therapy work? Who pays for it and how do students gain access to it?

Looking Glass accepts many different types of insurance, including Oregon Health Plan and private insurance. Some schools also have grant money set aside to provide services to students who may not have insurance.

“We’ve contracted with some districts that provide money so that we can serve kids who fall between the cracks, like those who don’t have OHP or they have high copays,” Booth said.

Students either are referred to Looking Glass’ school-based services through school staff or parents can fill out forms at their students’ schools and a Looking Glass staff member will reach out.

Families also can call the organization’s main office to start the process.

Need for more

There are five schools on Looking Glass’ waiting list, and the nonprofit is looking to hire more therapists.

Booth said she believes the need for school-based therapy likely will continue to grow. She said she hopes the level of service Looking Glass can provide also will grow.

“The more people know what we’re doing, the more they’re reaching out and we’re trying to hire to fit the need,” Booth said. “It could continue to grow and grow. Some of the districts don’t even have school counselors in their schools.”

Brooke Cottle, the director of the Bethel District Health Center, said that she and her staff at the clinic provide as much medical attention and mental health care as possible, but that it's still not enough.

"We do everything we can to support these students but it’s a capacity issue," she said. "We serve as a hub and students from all over the district can utilize our services, but its partnerships like this (with Looking Glass) that allow us to reach more kids."

Cottle said the fact that Looking Glass therapists visit children at school is exactly the way mental health should be approached.

"It helps kids feel like they're a priority," Cottle said. "And having therapists immersed in the schools creates a certain level of trust and consistency that students need."

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